Stormy Weather (12 page)

He was no longer proud to tell people that he had taken all his years of journalism training to become a tabloid reporter. He had become so well-known over the years, he had received offers from
TMZ
and
Star
Magazine to leave his television show to come and work for them.

However, he didn’t want to work for either of them because he wasn’t fond of certain things they stood for. He didn’t think making fun of some stars was the way to do business anymore.

“Cash, what is wrong with you?” Rachelle asked him, putting her hand on his leg. “You haven’t answered my question, plus you have this faraway look on your face. Was it something I said?”

He placed his hand on top of hers and gave it a squeeze. “No, it wasn’t anything you said to me. It’s me. I was just thinking. I have so much to tell you and I don’t know how to tell you this, because it will change how you look at me. I’m not the guy who you think I am,” Cash admitted.

Unconsciously her brow furrowed as her dark, brown eyes held his. They searched his face like she was trying to read his thoughts. “What? Why would you tell me something like that all of sudden?” she questioned, confusion in her soft voice. “I’m not following you. What kind of guy are you?” Rachelle eased her hand off his leg and placed it back in her lap. He missed the warmth of her touch immediately and wanted it back.

“You believe I’m a news reporter who spends his time informing people about car crashes and heroes in the community, but you’re wrong. I haven’t done any kind of stories like that in over ten years.”

“Okay, if you aren’t the kind of news anchor from the morning news like
Good Morning America
or
The Today Show
, tell me what you do instead.” The lines on her forehead got more pronounced. “Do you report the nightly news? If you do, there is nothing wrong with being on after six o’clock at night. I know a lot of people, including my father, who watches the nightly news more than the morning news.”

“No, I don’t do either one of those,” he confessed.

“Have you reported on something I might not like to see? Will I find it on the Internet? I understand sometimes reporters get assigned stories they aren’t interested in, but they do them away. I can’t fault you for doing something like that. Your job can’t be perfect all of the time. Life isn’t fair and sometimes throws you a curve ball, but it doesn’t mean I will like you any less.”

God, he wished that was true, but he wasn’t quite sure if Rachelle would say those same words after he finished. The unwelcome tension stretched even tighter between them as Cash tried to get his words together. Okay…here went nothing. He was going to place all of his cards on the table and see what happened.

“I’m the kind of tabloid journalist people like Wendy Williams and
The Talk
have on their television shows. I get paid a lot of money to talk about the latest stars’ downfalls. I have worked very hard over the years to uncover each and every one. Any lies or secrets celebrities might be hiding from their fans, I didn’t waste a minute getting on the air and showing the photos to back up my story. I
loved
every minute of it.

“I’ve done an entire newscast about how Robin Thicke might have had a scandalous affair with a stripper, cheating on his wife Paula Patton. I lived to find all of the best gossip and reported it to back my bosses for a nice huge paycheck with a lot of zeros.”

Rachelle eased across the bed, putting some distance between their bodies. He could see the disappointment in her beautiful eyes. She stared at him like he was a totally different man than the one she made S’Mores with downstairs hours earlier.

He missed the closeness they had shared. He knew he should have kept his mouth shut. She was reacting just the way he thought she would, and it wasn’t looking good for him.

“Are you saying that you are a reporter for one of those trashy cable shows that talk about celebrities’ divorces or the latest stint in rehab? The ones who compare celebrities’ mug shots and then have you vote which one is the worst? What about talking about an actress’s eating disorder or a hidden drug addiction?” she demanded, glaring at him.

Could he admit the truth to her?

Just hearing the words come out of Rachelle’s mouth made him feel worse than he already did. He knew what he had been doing for the past couple of years wasn’t the most respectable job, but it paid his bills and put a roof over his head for the longest time.

Hell, he was younger then and the thought of making a lot of money seemed amazing to him. Nothing else mattered, but now he was older and wiser. Time had shown him there were more important things in the world than having money.

“Yes, I’m one of those people, but I’ve changed. I’m not planning on reporting those kinds of stories anymore. I want to change my life and that’s why I went on this vacation. I know that I can become a better man and I hope you won’t hold my past against me. I’m very aware of how most people have their opinions about people like me. Do you think you can still give me a chance after I’ve told you the truth? I don’t think it’s a huge problem, but…”

Rachelle held up her hand, cutting him off. He prayed she wouldn’t toss him away without giving him a chance to show her another side of him.

“I don’t know how I feel about you getting rich off of someone’s misfortune. It doesn’t seem right. I don’t know if I could be with a man who made himself richer off of another person’s suffering. I need some time to think about this, because it goes against everything I stand for.”

A cold knot formed in the pit of his stomach as Cash got off the bed. He wasn’t going to give up on Rachelle. She was the woman he had been searching for, but didn’t know it until now. She was a caring and gorgeous woman who would think about anyone else’s problems before her own.

She needed some time to let all of this sink in. So, he would leave her alone inside his room and go downstairs. She couldn’t think about everything he just told her with him hovering around, but he wasn’t about to give up on her not when he just found her.

“I’m going to go downstairs and make some phone calls. Maybe this time, I can get a hold of my brother. I’ll see if he can transfer me some money through Western Union to pay for this room. However, this isn’t over between us. I want us to talk more about this when you’re ready.”

He headed for the door but paused with his hand on the door knob. He glanced back over his shoulder and found Rachelle watching him.

“Please don’t judge me too quickly. Get to know the real me and you’ll see that I’m still the nice guy you thought I was tonight.” Opening the door, he closed it softly behind him.

****

Why did Cash turn out to be somebody with a despicable job? Rachelle stared at the closed door. Cash had left over twenty minutes ago, but she still hadn’t moved from her position on his bed. It was like her mind wanted her to do one thing, but her body couldn’t do it.

This wasn’t how she imagined her night ending when she thought about being in Cash’s bed. She thought about how he made his money off the misery of other people and he didn’t seem to care about it until recently.

How was she supposed to deal with all of this now that she knew the truth?

She wasn’t trying to come off as judgmental at all. However, she did have some self-respect and Cash’s job wasn’t what most decent people would choose as their career path.

Now, he was trying to give her some time to think about his revelation and here she was upstairs debating on what she was going to do about it.

Most people might think she was overreacting. A part of her wanted to overlook how he made his money, but the logical side of her knew it was wrong and she shouldn’t give him the time of day. She was a big believer in being upfront and completely honest. Sure, Cash hadn’t lied to her, but what he did for a living was a form of bullying in some way.

As someone who got bullied and in middle school and all through high school because of her clothing, she knew what it was liked to be gossiped about when all you wanted was to be left alone.

She hated when somebody picked on another person to make himself feel better. It was even worse with Cash because he was getting paid huge paychecks by digging into these people’s pasts and reporting it. What if a celebrity didn’t want a certain fact known about him? Would he even care enough about their feelings not to report it on his television show, or was the idea of a huge payout more important to him?

Rachelle walked towards the door. She still had a lot of thinking to do about Cash. She didn’t know what she was going to do about this. She hoped Cash gave her the space she needed because she couldn’t deal with him at the moment. Her sisters might think she was being silly, but they hadn’t been teased like she had during school. The teasing from her classmates had left its mark on her, but she had found ways to get over it. However, it wasn’t something she liked remembering.

She wasn’t naïve enough not to understand some celebrities loved being in the spotlight and did everything in their power to have their photos in the magazines. Being in the limelight gave them the fame they were seeking out or a place on the newest reality shows.

None of them were her concern at all. Rachelle thought about the ones who loved being famous but desired peace, to live their lives without the media hiding in the bushes to take their photos. Somehow hearing about his job had opened up some old wounds. She needed time to sort through some things without him pressuring her to give him a chance.

Opening the door, Rachelle walked out thinking about how happy she was that she hadn’t jumped into bed with Cash tonight. Akisha had been right. She shouldn’t have acted on her attraction to Cash without knowing more about him first. His confession might have changed everything, she just wasn’t quite sure yet.

Turning to the right, she continued her way down the hallway to her room. She hoped a long, hot shower and a good night’s sleep might clear her mind about what to do. She had never been in this type of situation before. She usually knew what she wanted and went for it without any second thoughts.

Cash had thrown her a curve ball, and for the first time in a very long while she was torn. She never watched any gossip shows, ever. Yet, her sisters
loved
hearing about the antics of their favorite stars, but none it interested her in the least. In spite of that, here was she attracted to a very handsome man who made his living off something she found a waste of time as a career path.

She had to decide between her principles and the chemistry she felt pulling her in Cash’s direction. Choosing between the two wasn’t going to be easy, but it had to be done before things got too complicated and she wouldn’t be able to make a choice at all.

Chapter Twelve

Cash stood behind
Luxury’s
registration desk, trying to not lose his temper while his brother lectured him. He had finally gotten in touch with Gerald for help with money. Hoping he would send it to him, Cash could pay Rachelle for his hotel room. Hell, if he knew he was going to get the third degree, he would have tried one of his producers instead of going through this nonsense with his brother.

“Cash, how could you fall asleep on the bus and let some stranger steal your wallet? I mean, come on, you didn’t even feel a thing? I thought you were more intelligent than to do something so stupid. How many times have you bragged about how smart you are compared to me? Yet, you make such a dumb mistake,” Gerald complained in his ear. “You aren’t looking so smart now, are you?”

“I know,” he sighed, running his hand down his face. “You’re right, but can you help me?”

He truly hated calling his baby brother for help since they weren’t on the best terms at the moment, but he needed it. He had to show Rachelle that he knew how to keep his word because he wanted to make sure things didn’t end badly between them. After he confessed to her about his job, he saw how she distanced herself from him. He had to build back some of what he might have destroyed earlier.

Rachelle was the first genuine woman he had the pleasure of meeting in a very long time. Most of the women he came in contact with didn’t have the sophistication that seemed to radiate from her body. She showed her winning self the few hours she was around him. What other woman could pull off being sexy and smart without overdoing it like her?

He wanted to pursue her even more if she’d allow him. She was so exhilarating, and just thinking about chasing her some more turned him on. He had to win her back. Rachelle excited him and he wasn’t ready for that feeling to go away…not anytime soon.

“How much money do you need?” his brother asked, interrupting his thoughts.

“You’re going to help me?” Cash asked, clearly surprised that Gerald had asked him for a dollar amount.

His brother sighed on the other end of the phone. “I wouldn’t have asked you if I wasn’t going to help you out. We might fight, but you’re my brother. I can’t let you be stranded way out in the middle of nowhere. So, tell me how much you need. I know you will give it back to me when you get back home.”

“Eight hundred dollars will be perfect. I’ll be able to pay for my hotel room and get a plane ticket back home,” he quickly answered. “There is no way in hell that I’m going to ride the Greyhound bus again. I think the fastest way for me to get it will be through Western Union. Can you do that for me?”

“Are you sure that is enough?” Gerald questioned. “I think I’ll send you around twelve hundred and that will give you some extra cash in your pocket. I finally got the promotion I’ve been working towards, so I have the money. But, I do have one question for you—how do you expect to pick it up from Western Union? You don’t have any identification to prove who you are. If I remember correctly, don’t you have to show the place a photo ID to get the money?”

“Shit,” Cash cursed underneath his breath. “I forget I needed ID to pick the money up.” What in the hell was he going to do now? He was actually getting the money plus money that he needed and he had to make this hurdle.